The Golf Ball; Golf's Best Accessory

Golf is an expensive game, especially when you are first getting started. New clubs, a golf bag, and even “proper attire" all add up to a significant expense. But as expensive as those items can be, they can last for years without need for replacement. But there is a reoccurring expense in golf that can not be avoided, and that is the price of new golf balls.

All golfers know what it is like to watch one of our golf balls soar into a water hazard, or get lost in the woods. Tall grass, nasty rough, water, and sand, golf courses are full of areas that are designed to swallow up golf balls. With the price of some new golf balls approaching fifty dollars a dozen, many golfers look for ways to save money on golf balls.

The most tried and true method of saving money on golf balls is to look for lost golf balls on the golf course. But this can be time consuming and can contribute to slow play. Instead of looking through bushes on the golf course, inexpensive golf balls can often be found right in the pro shop of the golf course. Lost golf balls are usually collected and sold in pro shops, often for as little as fifty cents a piece. “Pre owned" golf balls are also sold by large retailers at a deep discount. These golf balls are found, cleaned, and packaged in order to be sold by retail golf and sporting goods stores, and they are usually sold for pennies on the dollar. But the downside to buying used golf balls at the pro shop, or repackaged used golf balls in a store, is that not only are they used, they are usually mixed as different brands, makes, and models that will all have different playing characteristics.

If you are a value oriented golfer who likes to use the same kind of golf balls, then there are two great options for you. There are many value brands of new golf balls that cost as little as ten dollars a dozen. Unless you are a highly skilled player, these less expensive golf balls are likely to work just as well as their more expensive counterparts. If you prefer golf balls that have more spin and softer feel than the less expensive models, then you might focus on the end-of-season clearance specials that happen every year. The golf ball industry produces new makes and models every year, many of which are not appreciably different than their predecessors. When that happens the old model golf balls will be sold at deep discounts, so it is possible to purchase golf balls that were originally as much as thirty dollars a dozen for as little as ten dollars a dozen, or less.

So keep your eyes open. Discounted golf balls are all around us, so when you find a deal that is too good to be true be sure to stock up while you have the chance. You will save money and have a supply of golf balls that will last you for a long time.